Kolkata to be London Soon

The state urban development
department is working hard to give wings to the chief minister's dream
of turning Kolkata into London. It has identified a two-acre plot
belonging to the Kolkata Port Trust on the Hooghly river side for the
much ambitious Kolkata eye project - modelled on the lines of London eye.
State urban development minister Firhad Hakim said they were working to
implement the project soon. "Once we are able to get the plot, a
project report (DPR) will be prepared, following which the expression of
interest (EOI) will be floated to invite private players to execute the
project," Hakim said on Wednesday.

The state government had
earlier written to the ministry of shipping to allow KoPT to auction off
the two-acre plot on Strand Road so that the state government could buy
it. The port authorities have also agreed to the proposal as that will
mean funds to pay pension.

Earlier, the state government had
discussed the project with representatives of a UK-based companies at
Writers' Buildings. The government is keen on implementing the project
on public-private-partnership (PPP) basis.

The Kolkata
Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) along with the Kolkata
Municipal Corporation is already working on the riverfront
beautification project that was launched by the chief minister. Mamata
wants to develop the Hooghly river side on the lines of river Thames in
London. There are also plans to extend the Millennium Park. The first
phase that spreads from Princep Ghat to Baje Kadamtala Ghat (near
Babughat) has already been inaugurated by the CM.

Apart from
the Kolkata eye plan, which is also aimed to attract tourists, the state
government is also working to attract tourists to the coastal areas of
Digha and Shankarpur. In the latest meeting on the city's
beautification, chaired by the chief minister at Writers Buildings, it
was decided that the state government will celebrate World Tourism Day
on September 27. The celebrations will be based on the theme 'Dream -
Green and Clean' and will be held at Digha. The plan has already been
discussed by the Digha Shankarpur Development Authority (DSDA).

A meeting with the district magistrate and local SDO will be held soon
to further discuss the matter. At present, the DSDA is working on
several plans including sprucing up of the civic infrastructure to
develop the coastal areas of Digha, Shankarpur and Mandarmani as
attractive tourist spots.